Any discussion of prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.
A hybrid optical code scanner (“hybrid scanner”) includes a laser scanner and an imaging scanner. The two scanners are used to independently read optical codes such barcodes presented to the scanner. The laser scanner reads a barcode by sweeping a laser beam across the barcode, capturing data representing the reflected laser light, and then processing the captured data. The imaging scanner reads a barcode by capturing a complete image of the barcode and then processing the image.
The imaging scanner is a removable handheld device. It can be removed from a docking station in the hybrid scanner and taken to a remote location to read an optical code. The code is then transmitted back to the hybrid scanner. Because the handheld imaging scanner can be operated remotely from the hybrid scanner, it is possible to take the handheld imaging scanner beyond its limited communication range. It is also possible to fail to return the handheld imaging scanner back to its docking station. Both of these conditions reduce the performance of the hybrid scanner because the imaging scanner is not available to scan optical codes at the hybrid scanner.
Therefore, there is a need for a hybrid optical code scanner that identifies these conditions and sounds an alarm to alert a user.